9 Pro Athletes Who Were Caught on Video Acting Like Dirtbags

So there’s apparently a Dez Bryant tape out there…At first, it was just rumor, but now, as police reports circulate, and rumor turns to investigation, it’s sounding like another of many pro athletes screwed up in front of a camera. Allegedly, Dez Bryant was involved in some sort of confrontation that took place in a Texas Wal-Mart parking lot and ended up with a woman being dragged from a car.

With all the bad press the NFL has gotten from the Ray Rice situation and their handling of it, it’s safe to say, aside from this terrible incident, that no one except for the media and the curious are excited about the existence of this tape.

However, getting caught on tape is nothing new for pro athletes. Their careers are 100% filmed, and their private lives aren’t much more private than that. So it should come as no surprise that we’ve got a litany of athletes who got caught doing stupid and/or terrible stuff on camera. I’d prefer not to rank these nefarious events, so think of this more as a rundown than a ranking. I mean, there’s plenty of dirtbag behavior to go around.

Let’s go for a ride through the dregs, shall we?

So there’s apparently a Dez Bryant tape out there…At first, it was just rumor, but now, as police reports circulate, and rumor turns to investigation, it’s sounding like another of many pro athletes screwed up in front of a camera. Allegedly, Dez Bryant was involved in some sort of confrontation that took place in a Texas Wal-Mart parking lot and ended up with a woman being dragged from a car.

With all the bad press the NFL has gotten from the Ray Rice situation and their handling of it, it’s safe to say, aside from this terrible incident, that no one except for the media and the curious are excited about the existence of this tape.

However, getting caught on tape is nothing new for pro athletes. Their careers are 100% filmed, and their private lives aren’t much more private than that. So it should come as no surprise that we’ve got a litany of athletes who got caught doing stupid and/or terrible stuff on camera. I’d prefer not to rank these nefarious events, so think of this more as a rundown than a ranking. I mean, there’s plenty of dirtbag behavior to go around.

Let’s go for a ride through the dregs, shall we?

Jameis Winston stole crab legs and was caught on a grocery store’s surveillance camera. This is more funny than upsetting. Stealing crab legs in and of itself isn’t all that bad an act, but when you consider this guy has the world at his fingertips and can’t keep from doing the dumbest stuff imaginable, it is a little tragic. But even then, it’s mostly funny because he stole crab legs. And what’s even funnier is that some team will likely draft a guy who got caught stealing crab legs and give him a contract worth $100 million or something.

9. Jameis Winston

Jameis Winston stole crab legs and was caught on a grocery store’s surveillance camera. This is more funny than upsetting. Stealing crab legs in and of itself isn’t all that bad an act, but when you consider this guy has the world at his fingertips and can’t keep from doing the dumbest stuff imaginable, it is a little tragic. But even then, it’s mostly funny because he stole crab legs. And what’s even funnier is that some team will likely draft a guy who got caught stealing crab legs and give him a contract worth $100 million or something.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that Los Angeles Laker Kermit Washington almost ended the life of Rocket Rudy Tomjanovich with one blindsiding punch during a game in 1977. During an altercation involving other players, Tomjanovich ostensibly went to go break up the fight (He was known as a peacekeeper). Kermit Washington may or may not have known that Rudy’s intentions were good, but either way, he laid down of the most barbaric cheap shots in history that fractured Rudy’s skull and cut his career short. He was suspended for 60 days.

8. Kermit Washington

It’s not an exaggeration to say that Los Angeles Laker Kermit Washington almost ended the life of Rocket Rudy Tomjanovich with one blindsiding punch during a game in 1977. During an altercation involving other players, Tomjanovich ostensibly went to go break up the fight (He was known as a peacekeeper). Kermit Washington may or may not have known that Rudy’s intentions were good, but either way, he laid down of the most barbaric cheap shots in history that fractured Rudy’s skull and cut his career short. He was suspended for 60 days.

There was no way I wasn’t going to include this in a list of damning things caught on tape.

7. A-Rod

There was no way I wasn’t going to include this in a list of damning things caught on tape.

Ok. This wasn’t video, it was audio, but whatever. There was never any doubt he said these things, and it’s hard to imagine how the public could have gotten any more upset with the Clippers owner after his mistress recorded him slandering the team’s black fan base and the company she kept. This easily made Sterling the most hated man in America. And he still hasn’t really surfaced since then. The man will be in hiding likely for the rest of his life. With $2 billion he got from selling the team.

6. Donald Sterling

Ok. This wasn’t video, it was audio, but whatever. There was never any doubt he said these things, and it’s hard to imagine how the public could have gotten any more upset with the Clippers owner after his mistress recorded him slandering the team’s black fan base and the company she kept. This easily made Sterling the most hated man in America. And he still hasn’t really surfaced since then. The man will be in hiding likely for the rest of his life. With $2 billion he got from selling the team.

Maybe you heard of this one? Ray Rice was suspended from playing when it was learned that he assaulted his girlfriend in a casino elevator. Then it came to light that there was video of this tape that put a haunting visual on the incident. He straight up decks her and knocks her down. The fallout from the tape technically hurt the NFL more than Rice, as Rice had already been punished, and it’s pretty clear that the NFL had knowledge and possibly a copy of the tape. However, Ray Rice will likely never find a team again after that footage circulated.

5. Ray Rice

Maybe you heard of this one? Ray Rice was suspended from playing when it was learned that he assaulted his girlfriend in a casino elevator. Then it came to light that there was video of this tape that put a haunting visual on the incident. He straight up decks her and knocks her down. The fallout from the tape technically hurt the NFL more than Rice, as Rice had already been punished, and it’s pretty clear that the NFL had knowledge and possibly a copy of the tape. However, Ray Rice will likely never find a team again after that footage circulated.

This guy might be the worst of them all. It might not be the most serious breach of conduct, or have the most devastating fallout, but it’s just…just awful. The Rutgers men’s basketball coach was caught on video screaming at his players, throwing basketballs at them, shoving them, and kicking them. These are 18 year-old kids. There’s lots of bad stuff on this list, but I don’t know of anything that’s more vile than his behavior here. He was summarily fired, but he’s a free man, so we can all be a little miffed about that.

4. Mike Rice

This guy might be the worst of them all. It might not be the most serious breach of conduct, or have the most devastating fallout, but it’s just…just awful. The Rutgers men’s basketball coach was caught on video screaming at his players, throwing basketballs at them, shoving them, and kicking them. These are 18 year-old kids. There’s lots of bad stuff on this list, but I don’t know of anything that’s more vile than his behavior here. He was summarily fired, but he’s a free man, so we can all be a little miffed about that.

Riley Cooper was caught on video tossing around the n-bomb at a Kenny Chesney concert after he was denied access backstage. His behavior reflected poorly on himself, his team, football players in general, and country music fans, who certainly don’t need any help with this stereotype. He was fined by the Eagles and publicly apologized, as most players accused of this sort of thing do.

3. Riley Cooper

Riley Cooper was caught on video tossing around the n-bomb at a Kenny Chesney concert after he was denied access backstage. His behavior reflected poorly on himself, his team, football players in general, and country music fans, who certainly don’t need any help with this stereotype. He was fined by the Eagles and publicly apologized, as most players accused of this sort of thing do.

It’s hard to narrow down to just one Money Mayweather moment where he was acting like an ass on camera, but if we had a gun to our head, we’d have to pick the bizarre video where he just goes off on Manny Pacquiao’s heritage, calling him yellow, then insinuating he’s a sushi chef, which is funny, but not in the way Mayweather intended. It’s funny because Mayweather’s an idiot for thinking that Filipino people are Japanese people. And even if he had gotten the race correct, what a lazy slur that is to begin with. But Mayweather has never been known for his wit. He’s mostly just known for being an illiterate dick.

2. Floyd Mayweather

It’s hard to narrow down to just one Money Mayweather moment where he was acting like an ass on camera, but if we had a gun to our head, we’d have to pick the bizarre video where he just goes off on Manny Pacquiao’s heritage, calling him yellow, then insinuating he’s a sushi chef, which is funny, but not in the way Mayweather intended. It’s funny because Mayweather’s an idiot for thinking that Filipino people are Japanese people. And even if he had gotten the race correct, what a lazy slur that is to begin with. But Mayweather has never been known for his wit. He’s mostly just known for being an illiterate dick.

Hernandez is currently on trial for murder, and his odds don’t look great. One reason for that are these stills published from his home security videos in which he is brandishing a gun hours before and minutes after the murder took place. In this defense, it’s the NFL, and Goodell will fine you if you’re not running around with a gun in the middle of the night. But even amid all the vile behavior in the league, this is a pretty clear smoking gun. Also, how dumb are you to get caught like this on your own surveillance tape.

1. Aaron Hernandez

Hernandez is currently on trial for murder, and his odds don’t look great. One reason for that are these stills published from his home security videos in which he is brandishing a gun hours before and minutes after the murder took place. In this defense, it’s the NFL, and Goodell will fine you if you’re not running around with a gun in the middle of the night. But even amid all the vile behavior in the league, this is a pretty clear smoking gun. Also, how dumb are you to get caught like this on your own surveillance tape.